Hungarian far-Right leader admits Jewish origins

A leader of Hungary's far-Right Jobbik party, known for its anti-Roma and anti-Semitic rhetoric, has admitted having Jewish origins.

Mr Szegedi has repeatedly used anti-Semitic rhetoric in the past and also got attention when in 2009 he attended the first session of the European parliamentPhoto: Reuters

2:19PM BST 02 Jul 2012

Csanad Szegedi, a member of the European parliament and regional leader of Jobbik, said he learned "not long ago that I had parents of Jewish origins, that's the big news."

"I'm not saying I wasn't surprised by this news," he added, noting it would take a while to "digest" the information.

Mr Szegedi has repeatedly used anti-Semitic rhetoric in the past and also got attention when in 2009 he attended the first session of the European parliament in a uniform of the Hungarian Guard, a paramilitary branch of Jobbik which has since been banned.

In his latest interview he noted however: "I think that what counts is not to know who is a pure race Hungarian, the important thing is the way one behaves as a Hungarian."

"To be Hungarian for me has always been a responsibility (towards my country), that has nothing to do with racial supremacy."